SBNation.com User Blog: Josh G.

Somewhere in New York: Elmira Jackals Round 1 Playoff Preview

Josh G. — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 18:05:16 -0000

"This is hockey, baby, this is the playoffs."

- Bob Cole

This is hockey, and this is the playoffs, and there is a Cup at the end of the journey for one fortunate team in the ECHL. It won't be named Stanley; it goes by the name of Kelly, and on Friday the Elmira Jackals will begin their journey which they hope will result in their first Kelly Cup in franchise history. Here's your lowdown:

(4) FLORIDA EVERBLADES vs. (5) ELMIRA JACKALS

EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTERFINALS - BEST OF SEVEN

G1: Elmira at Florida, Friday, April 5 at 7:30 PM

G2: Elmira at Florida, Saturday, April 6 at 7:00 PM

G3: Florida at Elmira, Wednesday, April 10 at 7:05 PM

G4: Florida at Elmira, Friday, April 12 at 7:05 PM

*G5: Florida at Elmira, Saturday, April 13 at 7:05 PM

*G6: Elmira at Florida, Monday, April 15 at 7:30 PM

*G7: Elmira at Florida, Wednesday, April 17 at 7:30 PM

REVENGE ON THE MIND?

The Elmira Jackals only return a handful of players from last year's squad, who fell to Florida in five games in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. Some members of last year's Jackals roster who I'll choose not to name, nor comment on whether or not they are still with the club, felt that due to financial issues, the ECHL made sure once the Jackals and Everblades got to Florida (at that time the series was tied at 1-1), that the series would end there. Those thoughts are somewhat supported after video was released of some questionable calls last year that buried the Jackals' postseason hopes.

But this is a new year, and a relatively new group of Jackals. Some key players from last year's roster are back again this year with Jordan Pietrus and Rob Bellamy spearheading Elmira's offensive attack. However, newcomers such as Andrew Rowe (the team's regular season leading scorer) Louie Caporusso (just sent back down from Binghamton), and Brandon Blandina will be called upon to take on huge roles during this series. In speaking with the Jackals before they departed for Florida, they downplayed the revenge idea, but definitely noted it's been something that had been brought up in the dressing room recently.

ALL-AWARDS TEAM

On paper, this matchup favors Florida, plain and simple. Not only are the Everblades the reigning Kelly Cup Champions, but they also have the ECHL's regular season scoring champion in Mathieu Roy (38G, 51A, 89P in 69GP), while Corey Trivino has taken home multiple ECHL "Rookie of the Month" honors throughout the year and posted 21P in the month of March alone. They are strong in between the pipes, lead by Mark Guggenberger (25 wins, .918 SP) and Gerald Coleman (23 wins, .918 SP). Still, the Jackals don't really seem to be phased, and instead have embraced the role of underdog in this matchup.

"That's great for them that they are winning all these awards. That only makes us a little hungrier," forward Louie Caporusso told me earlier this week. "If, in the media, they seem to have the upper hand, we'll take the underdog role and play with it and relish in it."

WHO'S IN NET?

I suppose it's a good problem to have when both your netminders are playing so well that it's hard to choose which one will be your game one starter, but as of this writing, Elmira has not announced who will be in the net on Friday night. Conventional wisdom would say it would be Maxime Clermont, a New Jersey Devils prospect who is more than capable of stepping in tonight and playing well. However, down the stretch, Ian Keserich was in between the pipes more often than Clermont, leading many to speculate that he may be tonight's starting goaltender. Keserich was the first off the ice at practice on Thursday, but that wasn't game day, so many still aren't sure which way Head Coach Dwight Mullins will go. Here's the breakdown of the two goaltenders:

Maxime Clermont: 41 GP, 20-13-3-2. 3.24 GAA, .899 SV %
Ian Keserich: 12 GP, 8-3-0-1. 2.35 GAA, .926 SV %

For my money, we'll see Keserich on Friday night... but I'm almost broke, so who knows.

A FIRST FOR MULLINS

Just two weeks before the Elmira Jackals opened training camp this season, they did not have a head coach. That's because Pat Bingham, who served as Head Coach of Elmira last season, bolted unexpectedly to pursue a junior hockey coaching position in Colorado. So, Elmira was able to bring in Dwight Mullins, who had only previously coached in the CHL and NAHL, to be the bench boss this season. To say that Mullins has been a pleasant surprise would be an understatement. And, yes, it's been even better that he's great with the media. In a league like the ECHL, with the absurd amount of turnover week-to-week amongst players, Mullins has held it together exceptionally well with an Elmira team that has had players being taken from them seemingly by the week with all the injuries to Ottawa and the subsequent B-Sens call-ups. He'll get his first taste of ECHL Kelly Cup Playoff action on Friday night, and he's looking forward to it:

"This is what you work for and this is what you shoot for," Mullins told me earlier this week. "You know, it's an exciting time. But, at some point in time you turn it over to the locker room. I'm excited for them, I'm excited for the challenge that we are going to go through together here now, but at the same time, that's what makes it real rewarding."

SERIES OUTLOOK

Many pundits will say that this is a bad matchup for the Jackals and it would be hard to debate them. Florida has some great scoring depth, solid goaltending, a difficult arena to play in, and know what it takes to win in these situations, having won it all last year. Still, there's something about this Jackals team that tells me their run won't end this quickly. Make no mistake: this will be a tight series. By that, I don't necessarily mean the games will be low-scoring. Instead, look for a win-loss-win-loss type of theme to potentially drag this series out to six or seven games. Elmira has a great mix of veteran players and young guys looking to make a name for themselves at the professional level. They are loose, they are excited, and, as they said above, they are embracing the role of underdog. They'll go into games one and two looking for a split because that would mean Elmira would take over home ice with games 3, 4, and 5 being played at First Arena in downtown Elmira. If they can split in Florida, I think this series swings greatly in the Jackals' favor. Because of my job, I can't really make a prediction here, but I will say this: Elmira has had everything working for them the last month of the season, and that's what it's going to take to knock off a team like Florida. We'll see if it works out for them.

Somewhere in New York: Elmira Jackals Weekly Recap, March 21-28, 2013

Josh G. — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:16:24 -0000

ELMIRA JACKALS (38-25-3-4) 83 Points. Second Place in the Atlantic Division, Fifth in the Eastern Conference

THE WEEK THAT WAS (2-2-0-0)

March 22: Elmira 5, Fort Wayne 2

March 23: Elmira 2, Fort Wayne 1 (SO)

March 24: Trenton 8, Elmira 2

March 27: Wheeling 6, Elmira 2

Who's Hot:

Chaz Johnson: Johnson made his triumphant return to Elmira this season, after bouncing around between various ECHL teams since he left the Jackals in 2009-10. Johnson's had to battle his fair share of injury troubles this season, including a freak accident in a Jackals pre-season game in which he took a puck off an unprotected part of his pinky finger, and the impact caused his bone to pierce through his skin as well as some nerve damage. He missed the first four weeks of the season, and has had some other nagging issues as the year has gone on. However, now that he's been consistently healthy (knock on wood) for the last few weeks, his game is starting to amp back up. Johnson is a power forward, make no mistake about it. The good news for the Jackals is that he's been playing like one over the last week. He has two goals and one assist for Elmira in the Jackals last four games, and has ramped up his overall goal out-put to twelve on the year. Johnson gives the Jackals a big body who has skill with the puck on his stick that can plant himself in front of the net on the power play and wreak havoc for opponents. He's not afraid to drop the gloves or throw the big hit either, and his game has really started to come full circle since the Jackals hit mid-March. He's a guy they'll definitely want to have clicking on all cylinders come playoff time, and all signs point to that being the case as of now.

Ian Keserich: If you look at Keserich's numbers, you probably think him being listed as one of the upstart Jackals in recent games is a mistake. However, there's a lot more to Keserich's situation than the goaltender's numbers over the last few games. This is a guy who hadn't found a permanent ECHL home since 2008-09 with Johnstown (yes, the team that inspired the movie Slap Shot). He'd been bouncing around the CHL between US cities like Tulsa, Memphis, Wichita, and Colorado before signing with the Jackals in mid-January of this season. And, like a true underdog story, Keserich has made the most of his opportunity. He's gone 7-3-0-1 in 11 starts for Elmira this season, posting a stellar .926 save percentage. When I spoke with Head Coach Dwight Mullins last week, I asked him if he'd decided on a playoff starter yet, assuming it would be Maxime Clermont (the only player on the Jackals roster with an NHL deal). He said he was happy with Clermont, but was very non-committal on the whole situation. Through the last week, it's been easy to see why. Keserich back-stopped the Jackals to a shootout win on Saturday night at First Arena, and despite taking the loss in the Jackals' defeat at the hands of Wheeling on Wednesday night, Keserich made 36 saves in a losing effort. Mullins has had both Keserich and Clermont splitting games down the stretch, so it will be interesting to see who gets the nod in a week when the playoffs arrive.

What's Ahead:

March 29: Jackals vs. Trenton - The Trenton Titans are mathematically eliminated from the ECHL playoff picture, and have been for some time now, but that didn't stop them from running over a tired Jackals team on Sunday afternoon at First Arena. And, it's fair to believe that Elmira will have that drubbing fresh on their minds when the two sides meet again on Friday night in the Jackals' final regular season home game. The Jackals are still jockeying for playoff position in the Eastern Conference with their eyes on home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. If Elmira wants to have a chance to start round one at First Arena, they get this win Friday night - it's that simple.

March 30: Jackals at Reading - The Jackals wrap up the 2012-13 regular season in Reading, PA against the Royals. Elmira can't catch the Royals in the standings, as Reading wrapped up the Atlantic Division title and the number one overall seed last week, but they can make a statement heading into the postseason. If the Jackals do fall in to that 4-5 matchup in round one - as many expect they will - a first round victory would set up a second round series with Reading, something I think anyone who has a pulse on this rivalry would be excited about. Again though, this game is far more important for Elmira, who will be looking to lock-up the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.

The Outlook:

First off, rejoice Silver Seven, the Elmira Jackals are in the Kelly Cup Playoffs! Now is when it gets interesting. As of today, Elmira trails the Florida Everblades in the Eastern Conference standings by two points, with each team having two games remaining. Florida seemingly has the edge here, because they finish up with back-to-back games against the Orlando Solar Bears who, despite their ridiculous name, are far out of the playoff picture and probably have mailed this season in. If the Everblades win both games, they will be locked into the East's fourth seed and have home ice in the first round. If Florida splits in any way, shape or form with Orlando (OTL, SOL, Regulation L), then things get interesting if the Jackals win their final two. Because Elmira has more regulation wins than Florida at the present (38 to 37), they would hold the tie-breaker should the two teams finish tied at season's end. That would give them the fourth seed.

The wild thing about this upcoming final stretch is that the Jackals could conceivably fall as far as seventh in the Eastern Conference if they lose their final two games in regulation. Both South Carolina and Greenville have 80 points to the Jackals' 83, and Greenville has three games left, while South Carolina plays two more times before their regular season is over. The two sides actually go head to head for a back-to-back this Thursday and Friday, before Greenville finishes up against Gwinnett on Saturday. So, as confusing as that all sounds, by Saturday night the Jackals will know both their seeding and their playoff opponent.

For my money: Elmira will be the East's fifth seed, and will be flying down to Florida next week to open their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against the defending Kelly Cup Champs.

I'll have a full preview of the match-up next week!

Somewhere in New York: Elmira Jackals Weekly Recap, March 14-21

Josh G. — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 05:12:42 -0000

ELMIRA JACKALS (36-23-3-4) 79 Points. Second Place in the Atlantic Division, Fourth in the Eastern Conference

THE WEEK THAT WAS (2-1-0-0)

March 15: Reading 2, Elmira 0

March 17: Elmira 6, Trenton 3

March 20: Elmira 7, Trenton 1

Who's Hot:

Jordan Pietrus: "Petey," as the guys on the team call him, was supposed to be an energy guy that lead by example when this season began. Despite wearing the "A," he has never really been considered a scorer, but those perceptions are beginning to change - very quickly. Pietrus was a monster for Elmira over the last week, particularly in the two victories over Trenton, where he put up five goals and two assists in the two wins, including his first career ECHL hat trick on Wednesday night. Pietrus has shown and proven that he can do a little bit of everything for Elmira. He's seen a lot of time on Coach Dwight Mullins' penalty kill, as well as a regular spot as a center of one of Elmira's two power-play units. He's not overpowering - coming in at 5'10'' and 180 pounds - but he will outwork his opponent on every play and definitely falls under the category of a player that you hate to play against, but would love to have on your side. With recent call-ups sending noted scoring threats Dustin Gazley and Jack Downing to Binghamton, Pietrus was asked to take on a bigger offensive role, and he's answered the bell in a huge way for Elmira thus far. He's on an ECHL contract, and no NHL team has his rights.

Rob Bellamy: I was at the Elmira-Trenton game on Wednesday night, and in the Jackals' 7-1 win there was no more dominant player on the ice than Bellamy. The University of Maine product kind of falls into the same position as Pietrus, in that he hasn't ever been known for his goal-scoring in Elmira, and has made his name more-so as a hard-working, team-first kind of guy. Last night was just the latest big step Bellamy has taken this season in becoming a more complete player. Bellamy was a plus-five, and fell one point shy of tying the franchise record of six points in a single contest, as he registered two goals and three assists against the Titans. However, there's so much more that Bellamy brings that isn't reflected on the scoresheet. He is fast as hell, and so often is able to draw defenseman to him as he flies down the wing entering the attacking zone, which of course opens up the middle of the ice and allows him to find a wide open teammate in the slot for a good scoring opportunity. It seems elementary to prepare for such a situation in a hockey game with professionals, but when Bellamy really gets his wheels going, I strongly believe it catches many of these defensemen by surprise, and results in huge gaps being left open as the Jackals enter the offensive end. Bellamy is linemates with Pietrus and Kevin Harvey, and the threesome has established itself as the Jackals best all-around line. Although Bellamy was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the third round of the 2004 Entry Draft, he's currently on an ECHL contract and an unrestricted free agent at the NHL level.

What's Ahead:

March 22: Jackals vs. Fort Wayne - The first of a good, old-fashioned back-to-back between the Jackals and Komets will take place on Friday night at First Arena in downtown Elmira. The Komets are the ECHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks, but unlike their NHL higher-ups, Fort Wayne is most likely going to miss out on the playoff party this season. With that being said, they aren't mathematically eliminated, but a loss in this game all but guarantees them an early trip to the golf course this Spring.

March 23: Jackals vs. Fort Wayne - The Saturday night game against Fort Wayne is an intriguing one. Of course, Elmira is getting closer by the day to locking up the fourth seed and home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but it's always difficult to play back-to-backs against the same team. This particular game becomes even more interesting if Fort Wayne wins on Friday and the Toledo Walleye lose at Kalamazoo. If that does happen, Fort Wayne would move within eight points of the final playoff spot with four games to play. Again, unlikely they get in, but if the Komets are playing a meaningful game come Saturday, it's only going to be that much more difficult for Elmira.

March 24: Jackals vs. Trenton - I want to write here that the Titans have been beaten - badly - by the Jackals the last two times the sides have met, outscored 13-4 and dominated in every facet of the game, so they'll want to come out and extract some revenge in this game. But, then I'd just be ignorant. The fact is, and it's a harsh reality in sports, the Titans have checked out. They aren't going to the playoffs, they aren't even close to the discussion, and a lot of these guys are counting down to that final game so they can take off and head home. I've never seen a hockey team look more disinterested while simultaneously being beaten up on the scoreboard than I did with Trenton on Wednesday. These are two points literally sitting there for the Jackals to take. And, despite it being the end of a three-games-in-three-days stretch, I think the Jackals snatch them fairly easily.

March 27: Jackals at Wheeling - Ah, the Nailers. Everyone's favorite team welcomes in Elmira during the final week of the regular season, and by the time this game rolls around, the Nailers will either be within striking distance of a playoff spot, or mathematically eliminated from the Kelly Cup Playoffs. They currently sit ten points behind 8th place Toledo in the Eastern Conference standings, but have two games in hand on the Walleye, and could very easily be playing for their playoff lives by the time this game rolls around. The Jackals will enter this game having had the opportunity to rest after a brutal stretch of games over the weekend, but they'll need to re-focus for this game to get past Wheeling. In the last four meetings between the two teams, Elmira has won all four.

The Outlook:

The good news is that Elmira is virtually a lock for the Kelly Cup Playoffs. The team is playing great hockey right now, and has only lost three times in their last nine games. They cannot win the division, as the Reading Royals locked up the Atlantic Division crown on Wednesday night (and the biggest reason they have such a big lead in the division is due in large part to a player no longer with the team in Philip Grubauer), but they can still get home ice for the first round. Elmira is dead-locked with Florida for fourth place in the East right now, with both teams sitting at 79 points with 66 games played. Last season, Florida stunned the Jackals in five games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals and upset top seeded Elmira en route to a Kelly Cup championship. There would be some great storylines if the two sides were to match up again, although I'm sure the powers that be at the ECHL offices wouldn't be too thrilled about those travel expenses. This weekend will probably be what ultimately decides whether or not the Jackals will be hitting the road to start the postseason, or staying in Elmira for the first couple games of their first round series. Fortunately for them, they are playing beatable teams who may not have a whole lot to play for, which should allow Elmira to get some points. See you next week!

Somewhere in New York: A recap of the Elmira Jackals this week

Josh G. — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 11:48:47 -0000

Hey everybody, my name is Josh and Peter has been kind enough to bring me on board to update you guys on the latest from down on the farm in the Senators' system. I work in Central New York, and primarily cover the Elmira Jackals for a local television station in the area.

I do, unfortunately, feel like it's necessary to inform you all that I am a Flyers fan, (***Hides***) but I loved Luke Richardson when he used to patrol the blue-line in Philly... and Jason Smith was the ultimate competitor (and also resides in my avatar picture).

... Okay, it feels better to have gotten that out of the way.

Here's how this column will work: Peter and I discussed me recapping the last week of action for Elmira, as well as highlighting any stand-out prospects that you guys may have your eyes on. So, before I go any further, if you ever have any specific interest about an Ottawa prospect that you would like to get an update on/hear more about, don't hesitate to contact me on SB Nation. I'd be more than happy to get you what you need.

On top of weekly recaps and prospect news, I am hopeful that I'll be able to do some short features for the site as well during the days that I'll be posting. Being that this is a smaller area, media numbers are also smaller. Therefore, we have a ton of access to players and coaches and I should be able to get you guys some different angles from time to time.

Alright, there's my brief intro, now on to the reason why you probably clicked on this post:

ELMIRA JACKALS (33-22-7) 75 Points. Second Place in Atlantic Division, Fourth in Eastern Conference

THE WEEK THAT WAS (1-2-0)

March 7: Trenton 4, Elmira 2

March 9: Elmira 6, Orlando 5 (OT)

March 10: Reading 3, Elmira 1

Who's Hot:

Andrew Rowe: Rowe, who was originally a Flyers draft pick, came to the Jackals this off-season and has been great for Elmira this season - when he's been in the line-up. He's one of those prototypical "in-between" guys, who will bounce from the AHL (Norfolk) to the ECHL seemingly every couple of weeks. But when he's been in Elmira, he's been one of their best forwards. In 57 games with the Jackals, Rowe has put up 60 points, and is 14th in the ECHL with 24 goals on the year. In the Jackals' three games last week, Rowe had two goals and three assists, including the first four-point game of his career in the overtime win against Orlando.

Max Clermont: Max is the only guy currently on the Jackals roster with an NHL contract, as he is property of the New Jersey Devils, but he's been in Elmira since the seasons changed from autumn to winter, when he was sent to the Jackals by the Albany Devils. Clermont actually was the back-up for a lot of his time in Elmira this season, due to the fact that current B-Sens netminder Marc Cheverie was Elmira's #1 guy for the majority of the year - until the injuries hit Ottawa, and the call-up, trickle-down effect hit Binghamton and Elmira. However, in a starting role, Clermont has been solid. He's 2-1-0 in his last three starts, and has 17 wins to his name; a career high. With three more wins, Clermont can become only the fourth goaltender in franchise history to hit the 20-win club.

What's Ahead:

March 15: Jackals at Reading - Elmira and Reading (Washington's ECHL affiliate) have become fierce rivals over the last couple of seasons, with last year's playoff series allowing the two teams to stir up quite a bit of hatred for one another. After falling behind two games to none in the best-of-five series, Elmira proceeded to win three straight against Reading, shocking the Royals, and knocking them out of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. They've continued to share a mutual dislike this year. And, to no one's surprise, the Jackals and first-place Royals are battling for the top spot in the Atlantic Division. Currently, Elmira trails Reading by nine points in the Atlantic Division, with a game in hand. This is the 15th matchup between the two teams this year - gotta love the ECHL, right?

March 17: Jackals at Trenton - In contrast to Reading, the Titans (Philadelphia's ECHL affiliate) are a cellar-dweller in the Atlantic. The Titans have 60 points on the year, but they have been dangerous lately, having won 6 of their last ten, including a win over Elmira last week. However, Elmira seems to like playing in Trenton, where they have won four games this season, the most they've won in any road building this year.

The Outlook:

The Jackals have been playing their best hockey as the regular season has started to wind down, which is obviously a good thing. Elmira has won five of eight, including divisional wins over Wheeling (twice) and Trenton. Provided that things stay as they are (which is highly unlikely given the up-and-down nature of player movement in the ECHL), Max Clermont should see the majority of the work in net down the stretch. While Andrew Rowe leads Elmira in points, their most consistent line has been the trio of Kevin Harvey (11-17-28), Jordan Pietrus (16-31-47), and Rob Bellamy (16-21-37). Originally, that was a group counted on to be an energy line, but they've been surprisingly high point-producers as well. Bellamy and Pietrus were both Jackals last season, and have gained a strong reputation with fans in town as hard-working, team-oriented guys. The fact that they are scoring just adds another positive dimension. Elmira has nine games left in the regular season, and while the chance of repeating as regular season Eastern Conference Champs is highly unlikely, the Jackals still have an opportunity to make some headway in the division, and look to be in pretty good shape to finish in the East's top eight.

BSH Audition: The Battle Within: Flyers' Special Teams Hurting Early

Josh G. — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 20:51:40 -0000

The Philadelphia Flyers have played two games this season and sport an 0-2-0 record. They have been in both contests - losses to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday and a Sunday matinee defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres - but they haven't been able to do enough to garner two points in either match-up. This has not been due to the play of Ilya Bryzgalov, who, so many times last season, was the reason the Flyers fell into the loss column at game's end. It also hasn't been due in part to the long lay-off from the lockout, and the resulting back-to-back the Flyers were dealt to open the season.

There has, however, been one aspect to the Flyers' game that has easily stood out as their biggest problem early on: the club's specialty teams play. Unless that improves, the Flyers could find themselves in big trouble as the year wears on. There have been obvious problems personnel-wise with the Flyers - most notably on the power play - but the harsh reality of the situation is that Jaromir Jagr and Matt Carle no longer skate for the Orange and Black and the Flyers are not going to be able to replace what either of those guys brought to what was a pair lethal power play units last year - especially in the postseason. What they can hope for, however, is that guys will step up to plug the holes left by two offensive-minded players. Getting Danny Briere back, hopefully this week, will help. Getting Matt Read back into a playing rhythm similar to last year, which he appears to be completely out of is also crucial. However, through two games, the numbers are somewhat alarming.

The Flyers are 1 for 9 through two games on the man-advantage, with Claude Giroux's rocket being the only marker in a losing effort Sunday. That's good for an 11.1% conversion rate. And, even though it's early, that's good for a spot in the bottom ten in the National Hockey League. So yea, that's not good at all.

Claude Giroux is Claude Giroux, so that's not a concern. He'll continue to make plays happen, and he'll continue to be a wizard with the puck. I had my doubts entering the year about Scott Hartnell, but he's been surprisingly in shape and has looked like he's capable of having another productive year. Wayne Simmonds, who set a career high with 28 goals last year, has also looked terrific, and has brought the most energy on the entire team, by far, through two games. After those three guys, there's been a serious drop-off offensively. Unfortunately for the Flyers, all those players are on the team's first power play unit. The second unit has been horrendous. Matt Read has been non-existent in any form through two games, Brayden Schenn's assist yesterday has been overshadowed by his inability to do anything at any other point through the weekend, and Sean Couturier had a nice re-direction for a goal Sunday, but he's in the same boat as Schenn.

The good news in all this is, obviously, that we're only two games in to a 48-game season. Still, the performance through those two games is alarming, especially given the fact that the practice time for the team will be few and far between with how many games will be condensed into such a short time frame. And the power play isn't the only issue.

The Flyers' penalty killing ability has been downright awful through two games. In fact, the Orange and Black have already surrendered five goals while being down a man this year, including giving up a three-spot to the Sabres on Sunday. That can't happen, like, ever. Especially not to a team who has numerous questions regarding their blue line.

Of course, the blue line is a serious problem. Luke Schenn has made some nice plays through the first weekend, but also took three penalties on Sunday - two of which resulted in Sabres goals, including the game-winner. Nicklas Grossmann has appeared slower than last season, and has shown close to zero ability to move laterally in his defensive end when defending against the rush. Kimmo Timonen is aging - quickly - and one has to wonder how many more shots this man is going to block before he finally succumbs to one.

The overall special teams statistics through the opening weekend look like this:

POWERPLAY: 1/9, 11.1% (20th)

PENALTY KILL: 4/9 penalties killed; 44.4% (24th)

More importantly, the most important statistic for the Flyers is "2". As in, the number of games they've played and the number of losses they have. In a league in which a team's specialty teams performance can directly effect their wins, losses, and consequently their playoff hopes, the Flyers need to get this area of their game under control - fast.

The overall special teams statistics through the opening weekend look like this:

POWERPLAY: 1/9, 11.1% (20th)

PENALTY KILL: 4/9 penalties killed; 44.4% (24th)

A Break from the Break: What Next Week Will Tell Us

Josh G. — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 18:01:03 -0000

There seems to have been quite a few moments this season when Flyers fans have said, "This upcoming stretch will really tell us a lot about this team and the direction their headed." While, in most of these instances, such a thought was warranted, few times has it applied so meaningfully as it does to this upcoming week.

After an All-Star vacation for everyone not named Danny Briere, Claude Giroux, Peter Laviolette, and hopeless romantic Sergei Bobrovsky, the orange and black get right back into the swing of things with a gigantic tilt against a team nipping right at their heels in upper echelon of the Eastern Conference this week. February 1, 2011 brings with it a contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the second place team in an extremely tight Eastern Conference, and a team that has defeated the Flyers in their only two head-to-head match-ups this season: 3-2 and 8-7 victories in South Philadelphia. While the scene now shifts to Tampa Bay, the stakes do not decrease in the slightest. In fact, a regulation victory by Tampa Bay means that the Flyers would hold a narrow two-point cushion (with a game in hand, mind you) over the Bolts. Still, there is something to be said for the Flyers' ability to be able to continue their tremendous first-half success into a difficult stretch out of a week-long break.

After squaring off against the Lightning on Tuesday, the Flyers head home on Thursday to take on the seemingly always-dangerous Nashville Predators, a team that sits just six points behind Detroit in the West's Central Division. The Preds seem, once again, to be a lock for the postseason, despite the predictable picks against them being involved in the NHL's second-season before the 2010-2011 campaign began. Three more difficult home games remain for the Flyers, as they welcome in possibly the greatest surprise in the NHL this season in the Dallas Stars, the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Los Angeles Kings to round out a tough five-game span. And, for what it's worth, the sixth game following those tilts is the season series finale against Tampa Bay right back in Florida.

All together, those five games right out of the All-Star Break gate will be against clubs with a combined record of 140-88-23, certainly reflective of a tough bunch of contests. View the team schedule here: Philadelphia Flyers schedule

The Flyers have been the best through the first 50 games, but they will be up against some mighty challenges a relaxing week for the majority of the members of the orange and black. Sure, all those other teams are going to be against the same obstacles as far as getting back into a rhythm of playing in games is concerned, but I don't think I need to remind all of you about how the Flyers have fared after long layoffs (a 6-2 loss to Vancouver after an 8-day layoff around Christmas time comes to mind). Still, this stretch presents the Flyers with a great opportunity: continue to build upon their record so far - the league's best - and make a statement during this "unofficial" second half start that the Flyers are the team to beat not only in the Eastern Conference, but in the entire National Hockey League. That message starts to be delivered Tuesday night in Tampa Bay. Until then, enjoy the break, but don't lose sight of what looms ahead.